The work performed during the first period completed the design activity of the BIO_MGT system prototype, targeting the following different aspects of the project:

the power plant and its components;

the infrastructure for the plant;

the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of the system.

The target for the plant is to develop a system able to reach the highest performances and reliability, together with a coherent design able to guarantee both high performance and simple installation.

Plant DesignThe objective of the plant design is the definition of the BIO_MGT plant in terms of:

layout;

main design parameters;

working points (i.e. operational point);

performances.

These objectives were reached under Work Package 1; a dedicated code was used to calculate the thermodynamic cycle and to simulate the operation of the system under nominal and partial load steady conditions.
Widest details are available in the following.

Definition of the BIO_MGT system cycle and layoutThe final configuration of the BIO_MGT system is outlined. The specifications for the main components and sub components, including the micro gas turbine and the heat recovery system for polygeneration, are available. High Temperature Heat Exchanger (HTHE) constraints are defined as well as biofurnace air supply.

Thermodynamic analysis, working point and performances calculation of the plantA dedicated code named AMOS (Advanced Micro gas turbine system Operation Simulator) was used to perform the analysis. The code performs the thermodynamic matching analysis of the BIO_MGT system considering each component (turbine, compressor, biofurnace, heat exchangers etc.) by means of their characteristics lines and performance curve/parameters. The AMOS code provides several outputs; among these, the working point for each component (in terms of pressure, temperature, mass flow rate and power) and the performances of the plant are available. The computation performed provided both the optimal layout and the working map for the Bio_MGT plant.
The main results of the code computation are the following:

operating point of the microturbine; results don't present considerable modifications in comparison with the case of the microturbine operating with natural gas; the points of both turbine and compressor lie in a good operation zone, far enough from chocking and surge line, both at design condition as well as in the partial load zone;

performances; results are very interesting. The computed net electric power is nearly 99.3kW, the net electric efficiency is around 20% (23% in the configuration without Exhaust Gas Recirculation), while thermal power available for cogeneration 211 kW at around 400░C, with a share of biomass energy contribution equal to 60%. At partial load (40% load) the performance map confirmed the possibility to achieve good performances;

operating mode; the calculation outlined that, at partial load, better performances are guarantee maintaining the TIT constant and varying the rotational speed. On the other hand, the computed maps pointed out that the turbine inlet temperature strongly affects the performances of the system.

Components and sub-components definition and sizingThe work was focused on the following components: high temperature heat exchanger (HTHE), Biofurnace and Chiller, as well as on the connecting duct between each component. Commercial Offers were used for the cost estimation for each component.

BIO_MGT Plant Layout

The Main components of the plant are the following:

micro gas turbine complete of any auxiliaries, such as cabinet air inlet pipe and ventilation pipe, turbine exhaust outlet flange with expansion joint, inlet and outlet flanges on the combustion chamber;

high temperature heat exchanger (HTHE) composed by two main parts and auxiliaries.

connection between the two parts (high temperature and low temperature) of the gas-gas heat exchangers;

Final layout and drawingsThe final 3-D drawings of the plant are available. These are under revision by the technical partner; at the end of Work Package 5, as scheduled, the final version will be available.

(This page is presently under construction)

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